Only 15 English players have ever finished in the Ballon d'Or top three, including four winners

Harry Kane will follow in the footsteps of Sir Stanley Matthews, Sir Bobby Charlton, Kevin Keegan and Michael Owen if he wins his first Ballon d'Or on Monday night.

The 33-year-old, who scored 73 goals in 65 games across all competitions between August 2025 and July 2026, is one of the favourites to take home the biggest individual prize in football.

In fact, the Bayern Munich and England striker is currently the odds-on favourite to win the award.

It is expected to be one of the closest results ever, but if Kane does overcome Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal to lift the famous golden ball, he will become the fifth Englishman to do so.

READ MORE: Harry Kane narrowly beats Lamine Yamal to little-known award ahead of Ballon d'Or

Only 15 English players have ever finished in Ballon d'Or top three

Kane is almost certain to make the podium on Monday evening. In total, 15 English players have finished in the top three of the Ballon d'Or, including Jude Bellingham, who came third in 2024 behind Vinicius Jr and Rodri.

Bellingham was the first Englishman in 19 years to make the podium, with Steven Gerrard (3rd) and Frank Lampard (2nd) making up the top three in 2005, when Ronaldinho came out on top.

Bellingham came third in the 2024 Ballon d'Or standings. Image credit: Getty

Back in 2001, Michael Owen ended a 23-year wait for an English winner after scoring 24 goals in 46 games for Liverpool. He later admitted he'd never even heard of the Ballon d'Or.

Two years earlier, David Beckham came second in 1999 behind Rivaldo, which was one place better than Alan Shearer, who finished third in 1996.

In fact, the then-Newcastle United forward recently admitted that he snubbed the Ballon d'Or afterparty after losing out to Matthias Sammer. "I was really, really disappointed," he told Betfair.

Gary Lineker finished second in 1986 after former England teammate Kevin Keegan became the only Englishman to win it twice in 1978 and 1979. He even came second in 1977.

Keegan and Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton (1st in 1966, 2nd in 1967 and 1968) share the record for the most podium finishes by an English player, with three each.

Here is the list in full:

Sir Stanley Matthews: 1st (1956)

Billy Wright: 2nd (1957)

Duncan Edwards: Joint 3rd (1957)

Johnny Haynes: 3rd (1961)

Jimmy Greaves: 3rd (1963)

Sir Bobby Charlton: 1st (1966), 2nd (1967, 1968)

Bobby Moore: 2nd (1970)

Kevin Keegan: 2nd (1977), 1st (1978, 1979)

Gary Lineker: 2nd (1986)

Alan Shearer: 3rd (1996)

David Beckham: 2nd (1999)

Michael Owen: 1st (2001)

Frank Lampard: 2nd (2005)

Steven Gerrard: 3rd (2005)

Jude Bellingham: 3rd (2024)